About the NFL’s My Cause My Cleats Campaign
Every year since 2016, the NFL has hosted My Cause My Cleats weekend, allowing players to express their support for charitable causes through custom-designed cleats.
During Week 13 games, players have the opportunity to wear unique cleats that bring awareness to issues ranging from health and wellness to social justice. My Cause My Cleats provides a platform for players to give back and shine a spotlight on foundations and organizations that are important to them personally.
Donovan Peoples-Jones Supports Sickle Cell 101
Donovan Peoples-Jones (DPJ) Supports Sickle Cell 101
For the fourth consecutive year, Cleveland Browns wide receiver Donovan Peoples-Jones has chosen Sickle Cell 101 as his cause for the NFL’s My Cause My Cleats campaign. Through the annual initiative, Peoples-Jones has become a dedicated champion for sickle cell disease awareness, education and research. With his customized cleats, he brings attention to improving treatment options. By leveraging his platform, Peoples-Jones continues advocating for Sickle Cell 101’s vital global mission.
Press and Media
- Yahoo!: Sickle Cell 101 Launches Summer Sickle Cell Trait Awareness and Hydration Campaign with DPJ Football Camp Partnership; 2023
- Sickle Cell Disease News: New Sickle Cell 101 campaign aims to raise sickle cell trait awareness; 2023
- Cleveland Browns: Browns players highlight charitable causes through NFL’s My Cause My Cleats campaign; 2022
- Press Release: Donovan Peoples-Jones partners with Sickle Cell 101 to raise awareness for sickle cell with NFL’s My Cause My Cleats; 2021
Past Cleats Designs
To engage the global sickle cell community, Sickle Cell 101 holds an annual My Cause My Cleats Artwork Contest. Artists worldwide submit custom cleat designs to represent Donovan Peoples-Jones and Sickle Cell 101 during the NFL’s My Cause My Cleats weekend. Creative submissions visualize sickle cell awareness through art. The community votes on their favorite design to be translated onto Peoples-Jones’ cleats.
Past featured artists include Scott Soliz (Scotty Tha Artist) and the late Hertz Nazaire. The contest allows the globaly sickle cell community to actively engage in My Cause My Cleats each year.
2023 Design Winner: Awa Diagne
Congratulations Awa Diagne, for winning the 2023 My Cause My Cleats Design Contest. As an art student living with sickle cell disease, Diagne created a piece titled “The Sickle Cell Fisherman” to raise awareness about a condition dear to her heart. The front depicts a fisherman with a blood bag, representing the constant need for blood transfusions and the importance of donating blood. The back illustrates a painful vaso-occlusive crisis, with a lightning bolt shape symbolizing a blocked blood vessel. Through her art she hopes to spread understanding, spark curiosity, and bring attention to sickle cell disease.